The marketing director for Microsoft France has poured water on hopes that we'd see the so-called Xbox 720 lining shelves this Christmas, Eurogamer reports. A translated interview has the exec quoted as saying, "What's certain is that there will be nothing new in 2012."

"The Xbox 360's cycle is not over at all," says Cedrick Delmas. "The proof is that we haven't price cut this year."

That doesn't mean we won't see the next iteration of Microsoft's hugely popular gaming box this year -- new consoles are traditionally unveiled at E3, a massive gaming show that takes place in June. We might see the Xbox 720 shown off there, but not put on sale until 2013.

While Microsoft doesn't sound like it's ready to start flogging any new toys, Nintendo is cueing up its Wii U console, and has confirmed that the quirky motion-controlled game system will be on sale in time for Christmas in the US, Europe and Japan.

So unless Sony can surprise us with the PlayStation 4, it looks like the House of Mario could be left in peace to hawk its wares this yuletide.

Still -- it's not bad news for Xbox owners, as the longer Microsoft waits to reveal a follow-up, the longer developers will keep making games for the 360. Enjoy the cutting edge while you can, gamers!

What do you want to see in the next Xbox? Tell us in the comments, or on our Facebook wall.

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Luke Westaway is a senior editor at CNET and writer/ presenter of Adventures in Tech, a thrilling gadget show produced in our London office. Luke's focus is on keeping you in the loop with a mix of video, features, expert opinion and analysis.
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